In the last few days, the situation regarding Middlesbrough front man, Chuba Akpom has been centre of attention.
A looming sense of dread has crept into the Boro fans’ psyche following a number of weeks with no sight of the athletic figure of the former Arsenal man. He has-in fairness-been nursing an injury and Michael Carrick has repeatedly attempted to ease the supporters worries, insisting that he wants the 29-goal hero to stay at The Riverside.
Those fears were almost realised as stories emerged of player and agent requesting numbers beyond Boro’s budget. The striker himself quickly poured scorn on those reports, branding them ‘not true’. So, with the roller coaster of emotions experienced by Boro fans, in full swing, here are some points to consider.
What we already know
The facts of current situation are thus; Last year’s Championship player of the year only has one year remaining on his contract and off the back of such a prolific season, Middlesbrough know that Premier League clubs may well test the resolve of the club with a bid during the August transfer window.
From a pure business point of view, every player has their value. Boro have sold assets before and recently in the shape of Marcus Tavernier and Djed Spence, who are both at Premier League clubs now. The club has survived those sales and made a healthy profit too.
If reports of salaries are to be believed, (although there are no concrete figures available) Chuba is on something approaching £25,000 a week at Middlesbrough. Not what a Premier League club would consider a princely sum. But there won’t be many players earning in excess of that in the Championship, and those that are, will likely belong to relegated Premier League clubs.
The Teesside outfit are not likely to want to improve that salary by much, if at all. As his agent, Akpom’s representative is absolutely doing his job by negotiating the best possible deal for his client. What an agent must also do, is represent the wishes of the player he represents.
The club’s options
To be blunt, the final say will lay with the Middlesbrough hierarchy, in spite of what the manager and his coaching team may want. But Kieran Scott and Michael Carrick have started to compliment each other perfectly in terms of the new recruitment model. Scott is orchestrating and sanctioning moves for young ambitious players, and Carrick is reveling in his role developing them. With that in mind, you would like to think that Carrick’s wishes will be considered in this scenario.
If – and there is no reason to think otherwise- Carrick wants Akpom to remain at the club, there is another option that has not been spoken about. If there is a discrepancy in projected value between club and player, and a contract extension can’t be agreed, the club could keep the player and allow his contract to run down.
Ordinarily, that goes against all business principles. However, the club came so close to securing promotion last year, taking a risk and keeping their main man for another push for the big time could prove worthwhile.
If they achieve promotion, the contract talks would prove a simpler task, owing to the financial rewards gained. Admittedly, that is a risk/reward gamble and one that could backfire spectacularly. With only one year remaining, the consensus is that he would still command a fee of at least £10-12m. But there were times last season that Akpom looked by some way, the best player on the pitch. How do you replace that quality? Especially with the club already searching for a goalscorer to replace Archer.
The rejuvenated striker; a player who was Boro’s first twenty-goal a season man for over twenty years, has not once shown a desire to move away from the club following their disappointing play-off efforts. If anything, the bond seems to be stronger than ever. In a video posted by the EFL Twitter site, he sent out a message to all Boro fans whilst attending the official Championship launch at the home of Boro’s neighbours; Sunderland’s Stadium of Light.
If you are a Boro fan, you are probably thinking; just offer Akpom a bumper contract incentive. Keep the same terms for now, if we get promoted with his help, give him what he deserves, give him the freedom of the town if that is what it takes. Idealistic? Yes. But anything is possible. Last season’s heroics will pay testament to that.